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The art of egg dyeing

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM Barbara Novak holds a pysanky ostrich egg that she has on display at the Bartram Trail Branch Library.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM Barbara Novak uses a candle to melt wax from a pysanky egg.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM A collection of Barbara Novak's pysanky eggs are on display at the Bartram Trail Branch Library.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM Barbara Novak holds eggs she uses as samples of her egg dyes.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM Barbara Novak uses a kistha or stylus to apply the beeswax to an egg, following a pattern she drew in pencil.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM A collection of Barbara Novak's pysanky eggs are on display in her home in Julington Creek.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM A collection of Barbara Novak's pysanky eggs are on display in her home in Julington Creek.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM Barbara Novak uses a kistha or stylus to apply the beeswax to an egg, following a pattern she drew in pencil.

PETER.WILLOTT@STAUGUSTINE.COM Barbara Novak creates her pysanky eggs in a special room in her home in Julington Creek.

When it comes to dyeing eggs, Barbara Novak makes her own rules. She dyes eggs year round instead of waiting for Easter; her designs are not limited to bunnies, chicks and crosses; and she uses a variety of colors, including black.

More than 30 years ago, Novak was introduced to the art of pysanky at a fair in Hudson, Ohio.

Though one might think dyeing the eggs is the fun part, Novak enjoys all of the stages, including the thrill of finding a new type of egg. In addition to regular hen eggs, she has painted cockatiel, quail, partridge, pheasant, goose, swan and ostrich eggs.

The process for creating pysanky art is a complex version of the regular Easter egg dyeing process that many grew up learning.

Just like the box of PAAS dye contains a wax crayon to block dye from covering up “Happy Easter,” a kistka filled with beeswax keeps the colors of pysanky eggs from blending together.

Unlike the regular version, however, pysanky eggs, with their intricately detailed designs, can take many hours to create. Just how long is hard to enumerate.

“For a simple design, it takes a few hours and about 25 years of experience,” Novak said.

As in previous years, Novak’s eggs are on display in the Bartram Trail Library, 60 Davis Pond Blvd., Fruit Cove, through the month of April.

“I love it when she brings them in here,” Darenberg said. “They’re beautiful.”

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